Arsenal goalkeeper Petr Cech is pleased to have become the first Premier League player to have attained the tally of 200 clean sheets. The former Czech international had gone through a lean patch of 11 games without keeping a shutout, but he managed to finally overcome his struggles to achieve the milestone.

Speaking after the game, he said: “It’s an unbelievable personal milestone, obviously. We took only 18 games to get nine clean sheets at the start of the season to reach the 199 and we had to wait 11 games, which is sometimes frustrating. But the most important thing is when the team wins.When you are in the difficult moment and you have a run of results which go against you, you need to look at yourself and find the way out.”

Cech’s future became a topic of speculation following a woeful performance against Brighton & Hove Albion, where he was at fault for both of the goals. However, he appears to have won over the fans for the season at the least after saving a penalty off Troy Deeney during the Gunners’ 3-0 triumph over Watford last weekend.

Despite this, he is unlikely to feature in the Europa League round of last-16 second leg against AC Milan on Thursday night. David Ospina has been the preferred pick to feature in the Cup and European competitions this term, and Wenger is likely to revert to the Colombian after he kept a credible shutout during the Gunners’ 2-0 win at San Siro.

On most occasions, the lead would be considered handy heading into the home-leg, but the Gunners are likely to face the Rossoneri with caution, given their defensive performances still remain under question. The likes of Hector Bellerin and Nacho Monreal are expected to return to the first-team mix after recovering from their respective knee and back problems of late, but there is still a vulnerability, which may be exploited.